Garment hanger



March 31,1942. J." A. seHMrrfr' v 2,277,995

GARMENT HANGER 1 Filed July 28, 195 ZSheets-Sheet 1 March 31, 19 42. J sc A 2,277,995

GARMENT HANGER Filed July 28, 1938 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Mar. 31, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE 2,277,995 GARMENT HANGER" John A. Schmitt, Waukesha, Wis.

Application July 28, 1938, Serial No. 221,806 I 18 Claims.

This invention pertains to garment hangers and more particularly to a detachable guard of contoured form to be mounted upon a conventional wire hanger and the means and mode of detachably interlocking such form therewith.

Wire hangers of relatively small gauge wire, having low triangular shape and provided with supporting books at their apices, are quite extensively employed by cleaners, pressers and tailors for delivery of garments. If left too long on such hanger, a garment is drawn out of shape by its weight and the material thereof is creased and marked incident to the narrow supporting surface aliorded by the wire. Garment hangers initially formed with relatively broad shoulder pieces are well known but are too expensive for commercial use in lieu of conventional wire hangers which are ordinarily supplied free-of charge as part of the service to the customer. Guard strips applicable to wire hangers have heretofore been devised but are usually of weak, flimsy construction and insecurely held upon the hanger.

The present invention overcomes these difiiculties and provides a guard or form strip of sumcient width and ample convexity to support a garment without concentrating the strain in narrow lines and hence without stretching and distorting the material or causing it to be sharply creased. The present guardalso includes anchor means by which the guard is securely held in position upon the conventional wire hanger and is trussed or braced against lateral tilting movement, but is nevertheless easily engageable and disengageable. The present guard or form is especially adapted for supporting ladies garments and embodies means for preventing the shoulders of the garment from slipping off the end of the support.

The object of the invention is to provide a hanger guard by which wire garment hangers may be better adapted for use and which will be of simple construction and capable of not only being economically manufactured, but more efiicient in use and which will afiord a relatively broad support for engagement of a garment thereon.

A further object of the invention is to provide a hanger guard which may be easily and quicklyengagedand disengaged for interchangeable attachment to difierent hangers.

A further object of the invention is to provide interlocking means having dual engagement with both upper and lower members of the wire hanger.

A further object or the invention is to provide a truss connection by which-the guard element is fixedly held against tilting motion relative to the supporting hanger. g

A further object of the invention is to provide a hanger guard havin the advantageous structural features and the inherent meritoriouscharacteristics herein mentioned.

With the above primary and other incidental objects in view as Will more fully appear in the specification, the invention intended to be protected by Letters Patent consists of the features of construction, the parts and combinations thereof, and the mode of operation, or their equivalents. as hereinafter described or illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Referring to the drawings, wherein is shown the preferred but obviously not necessarily the only form of embodiment of the invention, Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional wire hanger to which a garment guard or supporting form embodying the present invention has been applied.

Fig. 2 is a similar view illustrating a different mode of attachment.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view toward the end of the support and hanger and illustrating one form of interlocking truss or brace connection.

Fig. 4 is a similar view of a modification having dual engagement arms.

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the assembly illustrated in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the attachment arms or struts disengaged from the guard.

Fig. 7 is a somewhat similar construction employing single arms or struts, but otherwise similar to that shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6.

Fig. 8 is a detail perspective view of the locking arms or struts shown in Fig. 7 disengaged from the guard and hanger.

Fig. 9 is a transverse sectional view of the end of the hanger and guard illustrating a modification.

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the attachment means disengaged from the guard and hanger.

Fig. 11 is a transverse sectional view of a supporting structure similar to that shown in Figs. 9 and. 10 but wherein bights of the wire attachment device are extended upwardly through the guard member to afford shoulder stops to prevent garments from sliding oil? the ends of the hanger.

This is the same construction illustrated in Fig. 2.

- Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the attachment device with the shoulder stop extensions disengaged from the guard and hanger.

Fig. 13 is a perspective view of a modified form of shoulder stop.

Fig. 14 illustrates the use of a cord or string for securing the guard in braced relation with the supporting hanger.

Fig. 15 illustrates a further form of shoulder stop.

Like parts are indicated by similar characters of reference throughout the several views.

The hanger guard or form attachment forming the subject matter hereof comprises an elongated inverted channel shaped strip I, preferably of concavo-convex form, although it may be flat or of other shape, and is applicable to a conventional wire garment support 2. Such commercial wire hanger 2 is ordinarily constructed of a single length of wire bent upon itself to form a triangular loop of low altitude, including a straight transverse bottom reach 3 and a pair of diagonal top extensions 4 continuous with the transverse portion 3, the ends of the wire being twisted together at the apex of the triangular loop and formed into a supporting hook 5.

The guard strip I, which affords a supporting area of increased width upon which to suspend a garment, is angularly bent at mid-length into conformity with the inclined top portions 44 of the hanger, the hook of which is thrust through a medial opening 6 in the guard strip, provided for such purpose. The ends of the guard strip are. securely anchored to the hanger 2 adjacent to its terminal angle by an attachmerit bracket of truss formation, which interlocks with both the bottom and top portions 3 and i of the hanger and serves to fixedly hold and brace the guard strip against both tilting motion and lateral shifting movement.

In the drawings there are shown several different styles of such trussed anchor brackets having as common features simultaneous engagement with both the upper and lower members of the hanger and the opposing diagonal relation of their strut arms by which the guard strip is braced. A simple form of such supporting truss is that shown in Figs. 1 and 3, wherein a length of spring wire is medially reversely bent upon itself into a succession of opposite U-shaped bights, forming a substantially W conformation, the medial bight of which straddles the. upper inclined member 2 of the hanger. arms of such formation are projected through spaced holes 8 in the guard strip I, as shown in Fig. l, or the medial portion of such formation may be projected through a transverse slot So as shown in Fig. 3, beyond which the opposite arms of the structure are outwardly extended in close conformity with the top of the guard strip i to the edge thereof as at 9. Thence the arms are extended inwardly in opposite diagonal relation, thereby forming truss supports or struts it, provided at their extremities with hooks H which clasp the lower transverse member 3 of the hanger from opposite sides under inherent tension of the spring wire struts H3. The saddle connection '1 of the truss member with the upper inclined member 2 of the hanger prevents any side motion or lateral displacement of the guard strip, while the diagonal struts Ii]. securely brace the member against any tilting movement.

In 4', 5 and 6' there is illustrated a dual truss formation wherein each strut member It] comprises a length of wire bent upon itself into substantially parallel formation, the bights of such double formation being contoured into a hook l2, while the free ends of such double arms The terminal are extended laterally and formed adjacent to their extremities with shallow bights l3 for en gagement of the member 2 of the hanger. As is shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the free parallel ends of the respective strut arms are thrust through spaced openings [4 in the guard strip I, where the terminal bights l3 engage beneath the hanger member 2 in relatively spaced relation, while the double strut arms projecting from the margins of the guard strip I are engaged from, opposite sides of the hanger member 3 within the bight hook formation 12. It will be understood that the strut arms 60 of Figs. 1 and 3 and the arms it of Figs. 4, 5 and 6 when engaged with the hanger are under sufiicient tension to maintain their interlocking engagement of the hook portions H and I2 with the lower transverse member 3 of the hanger, while the upward inwardly extending arms of the dual strut I 0 are urged upwardly under inherent tension of the strut into tensioned engagement with the inclined member 4 of the hanger.

In Fig. 8 there is shown a modification wherein single truss members ID are shown, having shape substantially like those of Fig. 6. The struts I0 are extended inwardly at their upper end and provided with the bights 13 for engagement with the hanger member 4, while at their lower ends the strut arms It are formed with books l2 for engagement with the lower hanger member 3 in a manner quite similar to that illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5.

In Figs. 9 and 10 is shown a further modification of the truss member quite similar to that shown in Fig. 3. However, in lieu of disposing the reverse medial bends in a common plane, the middle bend of the series is disposed transversely to the guard strip l and the hanger 2 in straddle relation with the upper inclined member 4 of the hanger, while the laterally oppositely disposed bights 0r bends are disposed in planes at right angles to the middle bight and parallel with, the hanger and guard strip. The several bights are projected through a hole IS in the, guard strip where the parallel bends or bights project in straddle relation on opposite sides of the upper member 4. of the hanger, while the strut arms, In and terminal hooks l I clasp the lower transverse member 3 of the hanger in the same manner as,

before described.

In Figs. 2, 11 and 12 there isshown, a still further modification wherein the truss unit is shown provided with additional upstanding parallel. spaced bights "5 which project through the hole I 5 above, the guard strip 1 to afford stops to prevent the shoulders of a supported garment from slipping over the ends of the hanger. Except for the upwardly extending bights IS the truss support shown in Figs. 2,, 11 and 12 is substantially identical with, that, shown in Figs. 9 and 10 and includes the same diagonally disposed spring tensioned. strut arms I 0 and terminal hooks. II for engagement withthe transverse member 3 of the hanger, while the parallel bights l4. straddle the upper member thereof.

In lieu of the stops l6 formed integral with the truss member, shoulder stops as shown in Fig. 13 may be provided for use in. association with the truss elements illustrated in Figs. 3, 4 and 9. This stop comprises an arch member IT, which may be of fiber, cardboard, rubber, or other suitable material, the legs of which are thrust through relativelyspaoedholes in the guard strip I in proximate relation with the ends thereof. Thelegs of the arch H are preferably, althoughnot necessarily, indented to afford an interengaging or'locking connection with the guard I incident to expansive tendency of the arch member. I

In lieu-of a spring tensioned truss element as heretofore described, there may be employed a flexible cord or string I8 the medial portion of which is looped about the upper member 4 of the hanger coincident with the opening IS in the guard strip I, through which the string extends thence over the top of the guard member in opposite direction to the margins thereof. The ends of the string are tied to the lower transverse member 3 of the hanger and form downwardly and inwardly directed guys I9, which serve the same purpose as the strut arms before described in bracing and securely holding the guard strip in its adjusted position against either tilting or laterally shifting movement.

While the guard strip or form attachment has been herein illustrated as merely a concavo-convex strip of uniform width, it is to be understood that it may be formed of any desired size and shape and differentially contoured throughout its length as is most suitable for the particular garments to be supported. Such form attachment may be of various different materials including cardboard or paper, fiber, or, for more permanent use, they may be of metal. Such guard strips per se are well known in this art. The particular feature of the invention resides in the means and mode of attachment by which the strip is securely braced against tilting or tipping motion and also against lateral shifting movement relative to the wire hanger, yet is easily and quickly detachable and reengageable therewith.

An alternative form of shoulder stop is illustrated in Fig. 15, comprising a substantially L-shaped bit of sheet metal 20, the lower arm of which. is insertable on top of the guard strip beneath the transverse overlying portions of the attachment bracket. To accommodate it to different forms of attachment, including the string tie attachment illustrated in Fig. 14, and to facilitate its insertion beneath the overlying portions of the attachment bracket, the base arm of the L-shaped stop is bifurcated as at 2! to clear the dependent medial bight of the mounting member.

From the above description it will be apparent that there is thus provided a device of the character described possessing the particular features of advantage before enumerated as desirable, but which obviously is susceptible of modification in its form, proportions, detail construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the principle involved or sacrificing any of its advantages.

While in order to comply with the statute the invention has been described in language more or less specific as to structural features, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific features shown, but that the means and construction herein disclosed comprise the preferred form of several modes of putting the invention into effect, and the invention is therefore claimed in any of its forms or modifications within the legitimate and valid scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. The combination with a wire garment hanger of low triangular shape and a guard strip supported thereon, of an attachment member bridged across the guard member including a medial portion thereof projected through the guard strip into engagement with the upper member of the hanger and the end portions thereof extended downwardly and inwardly in opposite inclined relation from the margins of the guard strip to the lower member of the hangerv and engaged therewith.

2. In a garment hanger construction wherein a guard strip is disposed over and in contact with the top portions of a substantially triangular hanger, of inverted transversely arranged triangular truss means overlying the guard member including a medial portion projected through a hole therein into engagement with the upper member of the hanger and opposite diagonally disposed bracing members extending from the opposite margins. of the guard strip into engagement with the lower transverse member of. the

hanger.

3. A conventional garment hanger of substantially low triangular shape, a guard strip supported thereon and a truss member disposed transversely thereof, including diagonally disposed-braces interconnecting the opposite margins of the guard strip with the lower member of the hanger.

4. ma garment hanger construction a conventional wire hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a supporting hook, a garment protective guard strip superposed on the diagonal top thereof, and tie means fixedly connecting .the opposite marginal edges of the guard strip with the wire hanger. I

5. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by transversely opposite diagonally disposed brace struts connecting opposite marginal portions of the guard with the lower transverse element of the wire hanger.

6. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with 'a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by an attachment and bracing means having engagement with the top member of the wire hanger medially of the guard and connecting-the opposite margins of the guard with the bottom element of the wire hanger and extending in oppositely inclined directions.

7. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape hav ing at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by an attachment member having engagement with the top member of the wire hanger through a hole in the guard and extending thence laterally of the guard and diagonally inwardly and downwardly from the margins thereof into engagement with the lower member of said hanger.

8. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by an attachment member comprising a cord having a medial bight therein extending through a hole in the guard and enclosing the top member of the wire hanger, the respective portions of the string extending thence in opposite directions over the top of the guard and diagonally from the opposite edges thereof into engagement with each other about the lower member of the wire hanger.

9. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by trussed attachment means therefor including a pair of tensioned brace arms extending diagonally inwardly and downwardly from the margins of the guard into engagement with the lower member of the Wire hanger, the upper ends of the arms being bent inwardly transversely of the guard into engaging relation with the top member of the wire hanger.

10. In a garment hanger construction a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape including a hanger support at its apex, a garment protective guard superposed thereon, and a transverse stabilizing device extending from one lateral margin of the guard to the other and restraining relative movement of the margins of the guard.

11. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by a pair of convergent brace arms carried by the guard transversely interconnected at their upper ends, a medially formed bight in the transverse connecting portion for straddle engagement with the upper member of the wire hanger and hook terminals on said arms for clasp engagement with the lower member of the wire hanger.

12. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by a triangular attachment bracket transversely enclosing a portion of the guard and including a medial bight in the transverse portion thereof projecting interiorly of the guard into engagement with the top portion of the wire hanger and the apex of which is engageable with the lower member of the wire hanger.

13. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by an attachment bracket of generally inverted triangular form, a plurality of alternately disposed substantially U- shaped bights in the transverse top thereof, one of which straddles the top of the wire hanger with the adjacent bights on opposite sides thereof, the sides of said inverted triangular bracket being engageable at the apex thereof with the bottom member of the wire hanger.

14. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular shape having at its apex a hanger support is provided with a garment protective guard superposed thereon, characterized by an attachment bracket of generally inverted triangular form, a plurality of substantially U-shaped bights formed medially of the transverse top thereof, at least one of which projects above the level of the guard as a garment stop, the sides of the triangular form being engaged at the apex thereof with the bottom member of said wire hanger.

15. A garment hanger wherein aconventional wire garment hanger of low triangular form having at its apex a hanger support is provided with an overlying garment guard, characterized by an attachment member of substantially inverted triangular shape including a transverse top portion having simultaneous engagement with both the guard and the top member of the wire hanger, and convergent side arms having engagement with the lower member of the wire hanger.

16. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular form having at its apex a hanger support is provided with an overlying garment guard, characterized by an attachment member of substantially inverted triangular shape including a transverse top portion having simultaneous engagement with both the guard and the top member of the wire hanger, and convergent side arms having engagement with the lower member of the wire hanger, and a shoulder stop for a garment sup ported on the hanger carried by the attachment member and extending upwardly above the surf ace of the guard.

17. In a garment hanger construction, a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular form including a hanger support at its apex, an overlying garment guard, and a pair of diagonally disposed brace arms connecting the opposite margins of the guard with the lower member of the wire hanger and inwardly extending arms at the top of the brace arms having engagement with the guard member and simultaneously engaging the top member of the wire hanger.

18. A garment hanger wherein a conventional wire garment hanger of low triangular form having at its apex a hanger support is provided with an overlying garment guard, characterized by an attachment bracket of generally inverted triangular shape including a transverse top portion, medial bights formed in the top portion at least one of which projects interiorly of the guard into engagement with the top member of the wire guard and at least one of which projects above the top surface of the guard to form a shoulder stop for garments suspended on the hanger, and inwardly and downwardly extending side members forming brace arms engageable with the bottom member of the wire hanger.

JOHN A. SCHMI'I'I. 

